America's Debt
by KindaChill
Summary: America owes billions of dollars to countries all over the world, and now they want their money back. Alfred requests the assistance of Natalia to defend his country from being taken over by the blood thirsty countries because of her stoicism and strength
1. Chapter 1

Natalia sighed softly and leaned back on the cold, metal bench. The sky was a bright shade of pink as the sun was retreating and the moon was emerging. A couple clouds dotted the sky. A small, chilled breeze blew past her gorgeous features as she took a deep breath of the sweet air. Her blue-violet eyes scanned the area curiously. Natalia loved to sit on this bench every evening in her favorite park. Even though, it could get lonely from time to time. She didn't like to make relationships with other countries. It was too risky. She didn't want to end up like some of the other washed up, broke countries. Natalia gave up on marrying her brother, after he finally convinced her that it was impossible, breaking her heart and turning her into the "Ice Princess" she was known as today.

Natalia closed her eyes and rested her head on the bench, when a large hand gripped her shoulder. Quickly, she grabbed the knife from the holster on her thigh, stood up, and turned around to come face to face with Alfred Jones.

Surprised, he stumbled back and fell on his back, his bright blue eyes wide. "W-whoa, Natalia, it's just me! I'm Alfred!" He said, half yelling and trembling. "I know who you are, Alfred." She stated coldly, hopping over the bench to stand over him. "The question is, what are you doing here?"

Alfred stood up, smiling sheepishly. "Well, let's just say a couple countries are a bit angry with me… And… I need your help…" Natalia took a step toward him fiercely. "You come to me with your social problems, _why_?" She was starting to doubt his actual need for her assistance. He looked up at her, staring at her straight in the eyes, those beautiful sky blue eyes. Natalia shook away the thought. "I need your help because you're the only country I know that isn't frightened by others. I mean your siblings with Ivan! And, you truly are the only one that can really help me. Please, trust me."

Natalia nodded, sighing lightly. She slipped he silver knife back into her black holster. "Alright, what are we up against?" Alfred smiled brightly, his white teeth showing. "Well, I'm glad you asked! You know how I had all that money?" She nodded. "Well, I started to lend it out. Helping whoever needed it. So, eventually I ran out. And now, I owe money to a few countries, and they're a bit angry! They want to kill me actually!" Alfred chuckled, continuing the, in his opinion, hilarious story. "I don't have that much skill with defending myself, so I came to you. And I thought you could help me defend my country. You know if you don't mind."

Natalia couldn't believe what she was hearing. How could he be so irresponsible with his money? Even Feliciano was smarter economically. "How many countries are after you?" She crossed her hands across her chest. "Well, the blood thirsty ones are mostly Yao, Kiku, and Arthur. Then I have Vash, Feliciano, Matthew, Ludwig, and a lot more." Natalia rolled her eyes. "So you just piss off everyone?" Alfred laughed. "So you see my struggle… Will you help me…?"

Natalia looked down at the ground, thinking deeply about the pros and cons of the deal. Shrugging off that she had nothing else to lose, she looked back up at him, locking eyes once again. "Sure, I have nothing else better to do." Alfred smiled brightly, looking nearly if he wanted to jump up and down like a little girl in the doll section of a toy store. Natalia couldn't help but laugh lightly. "Then we can head over to America right now! I have a jet waiting to fly us! So you should start packing!"

_I don't know who's crazier… Him for the way he is, or me for saying yes… _"Alright, it'll take a few minutes." Alfred started walking toward a motorcycle, getting on. "Okay, I'll drive you there." She hopped on the back seat and cautiously wrapped her arms around his waist. "Let's go."


	2. Chapter 2

Natalia walked out of her house with a small violet suitcase and a blue duffle bag. Alfred was waiting on his bike, watching her. "So, how are we going to get this to the airport with a motorcycle?" Alfred shrugged. "Well, you can hold onto the duffle bag and, the suitcase…" He looked up at the quickly darkening sky, thinking. "You can hold onto the two, right?" Natalia nodded and sat on the bike, holding her things and keeping one arm around him. _

They pulled up to the runway where there was a huge white jet waiting. The door was open with a man in a black suit guarding it. Natalia stepped off the motorcycle with her things. Alfred followed behind her with his hands in his bomber jacket pockets. The man helped her into the plane. When she stepped inside, she was amazed. There were ten seats were made of a tan leather. Two large plasma screens were on the white walls. In the back of the plane, Natalia could see a kitchen. She turned around to face Alfred who was smiling brightly at her. "You said you were broke! Maybe if you sold some of your things, you would have more money." Alfred frowned lightly. "Well, I use it a lot, and…"

She sighed and sat down in one of the seats. Alfred sat next to her happily, which earned him another icy glare. He looked away, frightened. Natalia sat back in her seat, which was very comfortable, and closed her eyes. A few minutes later, Natalia was half asleep when Alfred gently shook her shoulder. Her eyes flickered open and darted to Alfred. "Hey, are you hungry? You can have like, anything you want." Natalia shook her head. "I'm not hungry." He sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Okay…"

Natalia closed her eyes and started to doze off again when Alfred interrupted her. "Hey, Natty?" She opened her eyes again, irritated. "What?" He winced at her peeved voice. "Umm, well… Why did you decide to come with me if you obviously dislike me…?" Natalia shrugged at his question, unsure of the answer. Hesitating, she replied. "Well, Ivan's been different lately. He's been flat out disregarding me. When I confronted him finally, he just continued to ignore me. So, with that, I thought it would be in the best interest if we became allies." She stated matter-of-factly. Alfred nodded and looked away from her.

Natalia kept her eyes locked on him as he faced the other way. She wondered what he was thinking about and why he really chose her out of everyone. It couldn't just be because of her personal strength. He could've picked Finland even! Then again, Finland was a bit empty minded. Whatever the reason, she couldn't figure it out at the moment. She sighed and leaned back in her seat, giving up on the query. Then, a deep voice announced, "We will be landing in Los Angeles in a couple of minutes. Pleas buckle your seatbelts."

Alfred smiled brightly at her. "Is this your first time in America?" Natalia nodded incredulously. "The plane couldn't have been going that fast!" He just simply chuckled. "We can go faster when there aren't a hundred people on the plane. Plus it has been like 6 hours." She buckled her seatbelt and laughed lightly. "I was asleep that long?" Alfred nodded as they felt the plane dip, tires touching down onto the runway.


	3. Chapter 3

Natalia stepped out of the jet when a large wave of hot air greeted her. Not expecting such heat, she stumbled back, into Alfred. He laughed lightly and helped her stand up straight again. In Belarus, it was always cold! "Maybe I should've brought you somewhere a little colder, like Alaska." He smiled softly at her. Natalia sighed lightly and continued down the stairs to the ground. Her eyes darted around, taking in the foreign surroundings. It was late afternoon, about 1:00. The sky was clear, rid of clouds. The sun was high in the sky. Around Natalia, there was just flat asphalt. She saw a couple other planes parked around, far apart. It must've been an airport for a lot of other wealthy people with too much time on their hands.

Alfred stood next to her with that big, bright smile of his. She returned his smile with a drowsy look. He laughed lightly and picked up her luggage that was sitting on the ground after being unloaded. "You're still sleepy? You slept a lot on the plane." He laughed. She shrugged and scanned longer. "Where do we go now?" Alfred pointed to a black mustang parked a few yards away. "Well, we'll get into that and then we can go home. That is, unless you want to see the city. I know you don't have anything like that in Belarus, right?" Natalia nodded and sighed. "I'd like to go home, if that's okay. Seeing Los Angeles sounds better when I have the energy to walk around…"

With the duffle bag slung over his shoulder and her suitcase in his hand, Alfred led Natalia to his car. He opened the trunk and set her luggage inside. Natalia opened the door and sat on the passenger's side. Alfred closed the trunk and sat in the driver's seat. "Hey… the steering wheel is on the wrong side." Natalia noticed. "Or it's on the right side and you've been living a lie for the past years." Alfred laughed brightly before starting the car and speeding away.

_This was just like a filler chapter. That's why it's short and all. And this is my first author's note! –highfives the world- _

_So I really appreciate everyone who takes the time out of their busy schedules to review my story even though I take 2 weeks to update it. So anywho, the next chapter will hopefully be interesting. Unlike this one –glaring at story- SO DON'T GIVE UP ON ME JUST YET!~_


	4. Chapter 4

Alfred pulled up into the driveway of his large house. He stepped out of the car and opened the other door for Natalia. She smiled lightly at him and got out of his black mustang. Alfred closed the door and opened the trunk, grabbing her luggage in a slight hurry. He led her to the dark brown door and entered the house. Natalia was amazed. She had never seen a house so extravagant and beautiful. She looked around in awe of the wealthy atmosphere. Back home, her house was pretty small. Belarus isn't the most financially stable country. It's mostly agricultural.

Alfred sighed and set her bags by the couch in his living room before turning to her with a smile. "Well, make yourself at home!" Natalia returned his smile with her own small grin. "Thank you. Where is my room?" He gestured to a large staircase that led to the next story. She walked up the stairs and walked down a long hallway. Alfred jogged slightly to catch up to her and open the door to her new bedroom. A huge window let sunlight flood the room and illuminate the tall sky blue walls. A queen size bed was placed near the window with a gorgeous pale green comforter. A slick wooden vanity sat next to the bed.

"It isn't much…" Alfred started, rubbing the back of his neck with his palm. "But I hope you can feel comfortable here." Natalia was still shocked by this luxury she had never experienced. "This is amazing. It really is. I've never seen anything like it." He just smiled and leaned on the doorway. "I'm sure Ivan has an amazing house, too." Natalia shrugged. "I wouldn't know… He never let me visit his house." She smiled lightly, despite being saddened by the memory. Alfred blinked in disbelief. "I don't see why the hell he would do that… Having such a beautiful girl in your house isn't something to prevent." Natalia felt her cheeks flush and turn a dark red as she locked eyes with him. "W-What?" She couldn't believe that anyone would complement her appearance in such a direct way.

Alfred smiled brightly at her reaction and chuckled. "Well, I'll leave you to get to your nap." He closed the door and left her standing there, still in a slight shock. Natalia walked over to the bed and plopped on her back onto the soft bed. She tried to find some answer to why he would say that for a few minutes before drifting to sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

Natalia slowly opened her eyes. It was blurry at first, a fuzzy blue surrounded her, but she quickly focused and sat up. She was still in her bark blue dress, however now it was wrinkled. Natalia slipped out of it, leaving it on the floor. She walked over to a closet and opened it. All of the clothes she had brought were already hanging there on the closet rack. _He already unpacked it for me…? _Natalia smiled at his kindness and dressed into an orange t-shirt and dark jean shorts.

Natalia walked down the hall and downstairs into his living room. Alfred was snoring on his black leather couch in front of his large plasma screen TV which was still on playing kid cartoons. She sighed and rested her forearms on the back of the couch, the skin cooling her arms. Natalia closed her eyes, relaxing at the feeling.

"Oh, you're awake?" Alfred sat up, observing her. Natalia's blue-violet eyes flickered open in surprise. She stood back up straight and met his eyes once again. "Oh. Ya, I just woke up." She looked away, still amazed at the décor. "And, thank you for unpacking my things for me…" He flashed another big smile. "No problem!" Alfred stood up and walked into another room though a doorway, so Natalia followed him. She stepped into the kitchen, where it was fairly dark, except for the soft orange light coming from the sun setting outside. She looked out the large window in the kitchen.

The now dimmed sun turned the sky into a vibrant pink. "It's beautiful…" Alfred stood next to her, almost touching arms with her and gazed at the sunset along with her. "Well, from what I saw, it doesn't come close to Belarus's beauty." Natalia smiled at his compliment and looked up at him. His features were illuminated by the sun set. She forgot she was staring at him for so long when he noticed and turned to face her. "Something wrong, Natalia?" She froze and blushed, her cheeks burning. Quickly, she looked away. "No. I was just… I…" Natalia stared at the wall away from him.

Alfred grinned more at her struggle to find an excuse. He leaned toward her cautiously and pressed his lips gently against the back of her head. Natalia froze again in surprise. She gulped, not sure if she should be pleasantly surprised, or offended that he would try such a thing. This was merely just a friendship at most. The deal was that she would help him fight off people trying to kill him. Nothing more. But, she still wasn't sure if she really wanted to be with Alfred. Her confusion with her own emotions drove her just to stay silent, standing there next to Alfred. He noticed her silence and sighed happily. Smiling, he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close to him. Natalia closed her eyes and rested her head against his arm, having finally made up her mind. The sun finally disappeared and left the sky dark. Alfred stood there with his arm around Natalia looking out the window. Natalia had never felt such warmth in her body. Even huddling by the fire was nothing compared to this sensation. Alfred was her fire. The fire to melt away the ice suffocating her heart.


	6. Chapter 6

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay! I'm doing another one of these! I just wanted to thank you to everyone who keep reviewing and reading and those who favorite the story! It means a lot to me! Probably because I think I'm a terrible author. I just write these stories for Belarus x America so I can read it and enjoy it. So the thought that other people like it too is really amazing! So far, I'm just building this relationship of theirs. See, it's going to be a romance and an action, but I want it to be something of quality. See, if they started just making out off the bat, then it would be some smutty fic about them just going at it. BUT NO. Nope I refuse to kill this pairing that way… So to answer Anya- Chan 17's question, No one's going to attack them yet. They just arrived in America so it's been technically a day, which I stretched into a five chapters, because I'm a professional troll. BUT SOON THEY WILL BE LIKE… Oh I shouldn't really say anything, should I? Well, it'll happen soon! So don't worry! I've wasted enough time! Onto the story! Enjoy! I'm hoping it doesn't go on too long…

The room was dark as they stood there, gazing out the window at the moonlit world. Natalia had gotten so comfortable in Alfred's arms, she flinched when he let go of her. Though saddened, she shook off all of the thoughts of affection toward Alfred. He looked down at her. He looked a bit disappointed as well. Natalia turned away from him and bit her lip, almost crying. She walked out of the kitchen, but stuck her head back in the room. "None of this happened, is that clear?" Her voice sounded stern and cold. Her words seemingly slapped him in the face as he nodded his sky blue eyes wide. To keep from feeling emotions toward him, Natalia repeated his flaws in her head. _He's selfish. He's stupid. He's careless. He's an idiot. An idiot. A stupid idiot. _Natalia, though aching to run back into the room and into his warm embrace, tried to refrain herself from caring about him. Tears had welled in the corners of her eyes. One slowly slid down her cheek, burning it. Natalia quickly wiped it away as she stood in the dark hallway. She would never let anyone see her cry. Crying was a sign of weakness. When you're weak, you lose your country.

The tall, ominous walls watched over her. Natalia heard a chorus of laughing. They were mocking her. She couldn't keep it in anymore. The tears flowed out of her eyes as she collapsed to the ground. There on the floor, she sobbed. Natalia hoped Alfred was in his room or watching TV or eating. She began to argue with herself. _IT'S NOT FAIR! I NEED HIM! WHY CAN'T WE BE TOGETHER? YOU IDIOT! IT WAS A DEAL, NOT A RELATIONSHIP REQUEST! HOW COULD YOU BE THAT STUPID? YOU KNOW WHAT'S STUPIDER? YOU LOVE HIM! YOU IDIOT! _The tears ceased. Natalia looked up, he cheeks tear stained. Although she felt a bit better, she was puzzled. She still had no idea. No one could help her or advise her. It's not like she had many friends. It didn't matter though. Natalia could handle it, she was an adult after all.

"Natty? You okay? Are you injured? Why are you sitting on the floor…?" Alfred's voice interrupted the silence. Natalia froze and turned her head to see Alfred standing there. But, she quickly looked away, remembering it was obvious on her facial features. But it was too late. "Why are you crying?" He walked toward her slowly with a concerned look on his features. Natalia stood up quickly to try to show she wasn't crying and she was perfectly fine. But she wasn't. As soon as she stood up, she lost balance and her legs wobbled as she collapsed again. Alfred quickly caught her by her arm. Another hand grasped her waist. Alfred waited a few seconds before pulling her back up and letting go. "I'm so sorry… Reflexes, I guess… I shouldn't have touched you…" He looked down, scared of what she would do next. Natalia was hit by a wave of guilt for making him think that way. She couldn't stop the formation of new tears. Natalia dropped to her knees and hugged Alfred's legs. He looked down at her, shocked and confused. "A-Alfred… I'm s-so sorry… I'm so s-s-sorry…" She hiccupped. Alfred kneeled down to her level.

Natalia looked at him, tears still falling. Alfred raised his hands to her cheeks and gently wiped away her tears. "Don't be sorry… You didn't do anything wrong." Alfred was by far the nicest person to her. He didn't blame her. He did things for her. He complimented her. It was all new to Natalia. She couldn't help but to love him. She stopped crying and just sat there gazing at him once again. "Natalia, you don't have to hide from me… I won't hurt you… I promise." Another statement which made Natalia's heart beat quickly. She closed her eyes and slowly leaned toward him. Alfred did the same. Their lips were so close, they were almost touching. He wrapped his arms back around her waist as he pressed his lips against hers. The feeling of his lips sent electricity and warmth through her body. Her whole head felt fuzzy as their lips came in contact. Natalia rested her hands on his chest. She could feel his muscles surprisingly through his shirt. Ivan always made fat jokes about Alfred, when in reality; Alfred was fairly more muscular than him.

Natalia felt the whole world disappear in his arms. Stress melted away. Problems seemed to vanish. She had never felt so happy in her life. Their lips separated and Alfred opened his eyes to observe her gorgeous features. She opened her eyes as well and smiled softly at him. "You're so beautiful, Natalia." She smiled a little brighter at his compliment. Alfred stood up, picking Natalia up as well. Surprised, she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. He kissed her cheek gently before carrying Natalia into her room, setting her on her bed. Natalia closed her eyes and relaxed in the soft caress of the bed. Alfred bent down and kissed her forehead before walking out of the room and closing the door quietly.


	7. Chapter 7

Natalia awoke to a warm hand stroking her cheek gently. She slowly opened her eyes to see Alfred smiling warmly at her. He was sitting on her bed wearing only a blue shirt and grey boxers. "Hey… Are you feeling better?" Natalia nodded and sat up. He leaned forward and kissed her cheek. She smiled and wrapped her arms around him. Alfred was so warm. He touched the back of her head carefully and sighed. "How about we go out and get some breakfast? Then we could… Look around the city?" Natalia nodded again. "That sounds nice…" Alfred kissed her forehead quickly before standing up. "Alright! You can get dressed then." He smiled and left her room.

Natalia stood up and looked at a clock hanging on her wall. 9:00 a.m. She dressed out of her clothes and stood in front of the closet. Then she ran to the door, sticking her head out. "Alfred?" She yelled, hoping he could hear her. He responded with a, "Ya?" He yelled at the same volume. "Is it okay if I take a shower?" She felt dirty and greasy, desperately wanting to be clean. "Sure! You have a bathroom connecting to your room! There's a bath/shower thing in there!" Natalia looked around and spotted a door. She walked over to it and opened it, revealing a huge bathroom. "Oh. Okay! Thank you!" She closed the door and stripped off her underwear. Natalia turned on the shower and waited for it to get warm. She stepped in the tub. Warm water cascaded down her body.

Natalia sighed in satisfaction as she closed her eyes. She shivered at the memory of last night and smiled. It was all too perfect. Alfred was so kind and gentle. Even though she had no idea what he saw in her. Natalia washed her hair and hopped out of the shower, dripping. A fluffy white towel lay on the counter. She wrapped it around herself and looked in the mirror. Her hair, dark and soaked. Her cold violet blue eyes. Her long pale face. Natalia still had no idea why he was so kind. She rubbed down her hair with the towel so it didn't drip as much.

Natalia stood in front of the closet and picked out a floral dress. It was faded and very lovely on her. She changed into her underwear and the dress. Natalia strapped her holster to her thigh, slipping two daggers into it. She brushed her hair and walked out of the room and down the long, now bright corridor. Alfred was waiting for her on the couch in his bomber jacket and jeans. He turned his head he see her. Alfred stood up and smiled as he walked up to her, taking both her hands in his. "You're absolutely breath taking." Natalia blushed and parted her lips to say "Thank you" when her silenced her with his own lips. Again, this feeling consumed her. A fire raged inside her body. It begged for more. Natalia tried to suppress the feeling, being partly successful. Alfred leaned away with a loving smile on his face. "Where do you want to eat?" Natalia paused for a moment. "I don't know any restaurants…" Alfred chuckled. "Oh, right. Come on then." He took her hand and led her to his car.

Alfred was about to open the car door, when he froze, like a deer in headlights. Natalia froze as well, unsure of his intentions. "Alfred, what are you doing?" She whispered, but cut off by him shushing her with a "Shhh!" He slowly stood back up from his bent over position. Alfred looked at her with large, panicked eyes. Whispering very quietly, he managed to say "We're being watched… I-In the tree…" She slowly turned her head to a tall, green tree. Natalia scanned it carefully and managed to find a well camouflaged figure with a sniper rifle. Her heart skipped a beat in fear, but slowly over came it as she calmed herself. "On my count, drop to the ground. Can you handle that?" She whispered, inching closer to him. Natalia supposed that whoever it was would wait until they were distracted to shoot. Alfred managed to nod in response. "Okay… On three… One… Two…" Their lips were so close they were almost together. "Three…"

With that they both dropped quickly to the ground as the gunshot went off right where Alfred's head was. "Run!" They both split in different directions, running as fast as they could. Natalia had trained enough that she could sprint in her high heels. She hid behind a tree and hugged it close, listening keenly. A soft clicking could be heard of a new round being loaded. Cautiously looking around the tree, Natalia saw a flash of blonde hair. Vash. It had to be him. He was very skilled with guns and a fairly aggressive man. It was no mystery why he would attack first.

Natalia watched closely as Vash sat up in the tree, changing his sniper to a pistol. She gulped and carefully snuck to the next tree, trying to get close enough to fight back. Vash dropped out of the tree and landed on his feet. She gracefully hopped from on tree to the next until she was behind him, grasping onto a trunk. Vash appeared not to care which direction Natalia had went and headed straight for the other direction where he saw Alfred run. Her heart thumped at the thought of Vash and Alfred dueling. She had to end him quickly.

Natalia stalked close behind him like a shadow. Then, she made a misstep and snapped a large twig. Natalia halted as Vash did. Quickly, he turned around and pointed the gun at her head. As he did so, she slipped her knife out and pointed it at him. They stood there for a few seconds; weapons aimed and ready to kill. Vash's eyes turned dark. "Oh, Natalia… Why are you and Alfred suddenly together? Is Ivan not doing well enough?" Her eyes burned with hatred and anger. "How dare you compare the two of them!" She quickly dropped into a crouch, extending one leg as she kicked the Swiss to the ground. The pistol went off as she did, just missing her head by a centimeter. Natalia jumped onto his chest, pinning his hand that held the gun down to the ground as she brought the dagger to his neck. She leaned in close, gritting her teeth with anger. "If you ever _think_ about harming Alfred again, I swear, I will kill you, and sleep like a baby." Vash looked up at her, defeat in his eyes, though they were still determined. "Why don't you just kill me right now?" She paused, staring at him. "You have your little sister to take care of. You better care for her and give her everything she deserves, got it?" Vash nodded in response. Natalia stood up, taking the gun from his hand and pointing it at him. "Now run. Run as fast as you can away from here before I change my mind." He glared at her, embarrassed as he sprinted away.

Natalia sighed and walked through the trees and saw Alfred lying on the ground and panting. She knelt beside him. "Why are you tired?" He weakly opened his eyes. "I-I had to run… R-really fast… A-and then… I collapsed..." Natalia smiled and helped him up. "W-wait!" He looked around, panicked. "Where's the guy in the tree?" She laughed lightly and kissed his cheek. "It was Vash. Don't worry. He won't bother you again…" She grasped his hand gently. "Now, how about that breakfast?" He blinked in disbelief before nodding and leading her to the car again.


	8. Chapter 8

**Oh my! The eighth chapter already! Lovely. And I haven't updated that quickly since the last chapter because I was disappointed in the last chapter. *sigh* BUT I'LL SUCK IT UP AND KEEP GOING. Because that's what heroes do. So, thank you again to everyone who reviews my stories. I get so excited every time I see a new review. I get up and start dancing. Believe me, ask anyone. So, let us go forth with this new chapter I stayed up late to start and finish. Please excuse the mistakes. *Patrick voice* I love you… This one's gonna be a bit short though because it'd be too long if I went the full length I could and I would get unmotivated and all blargh so don't complain about how lazy I am.**

Natalia and Alfred had spent the whole day driving around Los Angeles. Occasionally they got out of his black mustang to explore a museum or a popular tourist attraction. This was all foreign to Natalia. She was used to the calm country with simple living and common people. But this, this was crazy. There were bustling streets and noisy Americans strutting up and down the sidewalks. Some were yammering on into their cellphones loudly or dragging along a bratty child, who was crying and begging to get a useless toy they would get bored with within an hour. And the traffic everywhere was horrendous. Sometimes it would get so congested with action that they would move about a foot a minute. Alfred had also spent the day, not enjoying himself as much as checking Natalia's reactions to see what she thought about the city. Natalia was both amazed and disgusted at the same time, but she managed to hide her dissatisfaction.

As the evening drew near and the dark blanket of night covered the sky, Alfred had offered to take her out to dinner. She agreed, curious of the cuisine this city had to offer. Grinning, he pulled into a parking space and got out of the car, along with Natalia. He took her delicate hand in his and started toward the restaurant. It appeared very modern and foreign. As they stepped inside, a low murmur of conversations filled the large room. It was dim inside, the tables were candle lit. The air smelled delicious and made her mouth water as the aroma filled her nose. Natalia managed to smile warmly at the atmosphere as Alfred spoke to a waitress standing at a podium at the front of the restaurant.

"Reservation under Jones?" He spoke. The waitress looked up from the computer in front of her. Natalia watched as the woman scanned Alfred from the tip of his sandy blonde Nantucket, down to his black Converse. She felt a wave of anger quickly wash through her as the waitress smiled, as if she was trying to win over Alfred. Of course, she felt as though every woman who laid eyes on him the whole day had intentions to take him away. Natalia didn't know why she felt this way. She wanted to hold on to Alfred as long as she could, and she wouldn't let some skank get in between them. Natalia was shocked as she thought such things and shook them away in disgust of herself.

"Yes, of course! Right this way Mr. Jones." The waitress gave the typical service smiles as she led them to a table, already set for them. A white table cloth covered the small square table. A little red candle sat in the middle, setting a bit of a romantic tone. Two plates were set in front of each chair, carrying a neatly folded napkin. Alfred scooted Natalia's chair out with a loving smile as he helped her sit down. He sat down in his own chair and looked up at her, again searching for a reaction. Natalia noticed his pursuit and answered him, as if reading his mind.

"This place is very nice." She stated, making Alfred's face light up again. He was proud to have made her happy even though this was all new to her and there was a large chance that she could have disapproved of all of this luxury.

"I'm really glad you like it!" Alfred smiled brightly again. "This is one of the best restaurants in LA! A lot of important come here, actually. It's hard to get into."

"Then how did you get reservations?" Natalia grew worried he had paid too much for this table and she was throwing away his money quickly, even though he didn't have any left. Most of it belonged to Yao. He probably could've dragged her to a Golden Coral buffet and she would've been okay with that.

"Well, I'm pretty important." He smirked and looked around. "It's the tourists that have a tough time getting reservations."

Natalia stared across the table at him doubtfully. "How are you important? I mean, no offense, but I didn't know you were a celebrity."

Alfred simply shrugged and looked down at a menu the waitress had handed to him. "I'm just a well-known guy, ya know?"

She nodded in response and scanned the menu as well, looking for something appetizing.


End file.
